BANGKOK – More than 20 provinces have been inundated with floods after days of heavy rain in several regions of Thailand, raising concerns that flooding may once again reach industrial areas in the central region and Bangkok as in 2011.

Reuters

A woman empties water from her shop onto the flooded street outside at Srimahaphot district in Prachinburi province, east of Bangkok, on Sept. 24.

Widespread rain has resulted in flash floods in 18 provinces in the east, north, northeast and central regions, while water burst canals and river banks in three other provinces, according to Thailand’s Department of Disaster Prevention Control. About 1.5 million people from 420,000 households have been affected, and nine people were reported dead.

As flood water reached Ayutthaya province, about 50 miles north of Bangkok, the Thai government rushed to reassure business operators and Thai residents that the situation was still under control and that it won’t be a repeat the massive flood in 2011.

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“The flooding situation this year will not be as severe as in 2011,” said Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra after the Cabinet meeting Tuesday. She added that the rain level is less than in 2011 and that agencies are working to slow down water from the north while accelerating water discharge from the central plains.

Thailand suffered its worst flood during the rainy season in 2011: 65 of Thailand’s 77 provinces were declared flood disaster zones, while parts of Bangkok were also flooded. Some 800 people were reported dead and 13 million people affected.

The floods in the 2011 rainy season also hit the country’s industrial output, with the economy barely registering any growth. The world’s biggest manufacturers were also affected with delayed shipments after the production and supply chain of vital components — from hard-disk drives to electronic car components — came to a halt. Seven major industrial estates were inundated by as much as 10 feet during the floods.

Ms. Yingluck said she is confident that the floods will not reach Bangkok, but expressed concern over an industrial estate in Ayutthya province that doesn’t have a proper flood wall.

Since the 2011 flood, which the World Bank estimated to have cost Thailand about $45.7 billion in economic damages and losses, Ms. Yingluck’s government has launched an $11 billion effort to improve Thailand’s flood defenses as it scrambled to reassure anxious investors.

However, the government’s floods control projects have been met with legal delays and protests. A court in June ordered Ms. Yingluck’s administration to conduct an environment and health impact assessment before it can proceed with the projects, which include constructions of dams, reservoirs and a flood prevention command center. The government recently filed an appeal.

On Sunday, hundreds of people gathered in downtown Bangkok to support to a campaign by the country’s environment groups against the construction of a dam, which the groups said would destroy a large chunk of a Thai national park.

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